Bayou Meto: A Premier Hunting and Fishing Destination in Southeast Arkansas

Chris Bryan Professor Swain English 1013 8 October 2012 Bayou Meto Wildlife Management Area Bayou Meto is one of the most special places in Southeast Arkansas because it offers hunters and fisherman a great place to hunt and fish. Bayou Meto, better known as the “Scatters”, is located in Arkansas and Jefferson counties. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission purchased it in the 1930’s and people keep coming back year after year. Bayou Meto has various access points to begin a hunting or fishing trip. Bayou Meto WMA can be reached off U. S. highways 79, 165, 152, 88 and 276.

Access to most of the area is by walk-in and boat only. A few locations to begin a hunt would be: Long Pond, Long Bell, Buckingham Flats, Cannon Brake, Temple Island, and Beaver Dam Slough. Fishing locations would include Cox Cypress, Wrape Plantation, and Halowell Reservoir. Bayou Meto is mainly known for duck hunting. People from all over the country travel to the Scatters every year to shoot ducks in those famous woods. It is rated by Ducks Unlimited to be one of the top places to duck hunt in the world. It used to be a popular place for guided duck hunts until it was banned in the 1980’s.

Guiding was banned because it was against the law to accept money from people in a public hunting area. The duck limit per day is three mallards and two wood ducks. Bayou Meto is one of the largest state-owned wildlife management areas in the nation, encompassing 33,832 acres in Arkansas and Jefferson counties. Bayou Meto is full of bayous and creeks that flood the timber that the ducks use for feeding on acorns. The water level of Bayou Meto all depends on the amount of rain it receives. If it is a dry year there will not be enough water to duck hunt.

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Hunters often get disappointed when this happens. About thirteen thousand acres are flooded if the water is high during duck season. Oak trees are found throughout the woods, and they produce a plentiful amount of acorns, which the wildlife feed on. Deer hunting is also very popular in the Scatters. There have been many state records killed in the Scatters. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission plants food plots each year that increases deer antler growth. Many hunters choose to hunt over the food plots or nearby farm fields. The deer also feed on the acorns that fall from the oak trees in the woods.

The Eastern Wild Turkey is a very popular animal to hunt as well. The turkey population is very good in the Scatters. The limit for turkeys in the Scatters is two gobblers. The turkeys also feed in the food plots with deer. Small game hunting attracts a lot of hunters also. Raccoon hunting is the most popular form of hunting. Hunters also like to hunt: coyotes, bobcats, crows, rabbits, and squirrels. Coyotes and bobcats are a major problem because they kill turkeys and baby deer. The Scatters offers some of the best fishing in Arkansas.

The most popular fish to catch is the Largemouth Bass. The Crappie and Bream are also very popular fish to catch. The Arkansas Game and Fish stocks the Wrape Plantation with fish each year to ensure a fisherman will have a good fishing trip. The Scatters is a great place to spend time in the outdoors. It offers numerous hunting and fishing opportunities. The Arkansas Game and Fish strives to make this one of the most special places in the state and in the country. These thirty three thousand acres should give the outdoorsman a great chance to catch a fish or kill an animal.

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